Writing for the Web
- As with any writing, think about Audience and Purpose - Who am I writing for? What do I want to achieve?
- Sentences and paragraphs which are designed for viewing on a screen should be shorter and less complex than for printing. (Note: on the web, the BBC news has one sentence per paragraph.)
- Write text which can be scanned easily - most visual users scan much more on the web than they do with other types of reading
- Do not assume that your user is a native speaker of your language
- Do not assume that your user lives in your country or shares your cultural knowledge
- Do not use text like "click here" - do not assume that your user has a mouse ("pointing device")
- Do not use text like "see below" - do not assume that your user has a visual display: it may be an aural browser
- Remember that your user may have dyslexia or another reading difficulty
- Write text which makes sense when read in a linear fashion - aural browsers usually need this
When writing "alt" text, write for a user who cannot see the image because of sight difficulties or because of their browser /browser settings. (Alt text is the text which most visual browsers display when you hold the mouse over an image.)
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